Crochet Queen: Royal Ramblings

I think that it is time to get the history down here to preserve it for future generations, just like I want to preserve my beloved crochet for future generations too! I know for sure I am a third generation needleworker. My grandmother, Myrtle Olive (Shipe) Eshelman (1890-1973),bless her wonderful soul, did tatting and was a superb seamstress. My mother, Dorothy Eleanor (Eshelman) Blakley (1926-2009) took after her and was a fabulous seamstress also. From the time I was a young child of two I would visit my granmother by myself. She took such good care of me and as I got older was so much fun to be around. To this day I can remember what a wonderful cook she was: chicken and noodles, scalloped potatoes and ham, green beans fresh out of the garden and delicious pies of all kinds. Her apple, cherry and peach pies were to die for! I like to cook and actually made pie crusts from scratch for many years until I discovered "Pillsbury" all-ready pie crusts. Since that day, I haven...

Kudos to Classic Elite Yarn Company for including "crochet" in their Spring Knit-Along!! The back story is this....Fuzzy Wuzzy Yarns in Arlington Heights, IL is a relatively new and crochet friendly store. She was promoting the Knit-Along when one of her more astute crochet customers asked the question, Can crocheters participate." Why, of course, thought the owner, and she checked with Classic Elite to see if they would offer patterns for crocheters so they could participate. Well, they had to have a meeting about it first, but they got back to her with the question, is this national? Are all LYS's wanting to participate? Imagine....it is hard enough keeping a LYS afloat in these hard times without worrying about what other stores are doing! Hopefully, Classic Elite, has done their part to suggest to their network of national clients that it is a good idea to include crocheters in this fun activity. I mean, why shut out a portion of potential business, especially a ...

Crocheters the world over have struggled with the "coolness" factor and often have found themselves hovering in the cool shadows of the knitters, but no more! Even though I am ehem, older, I fancy myself as young at heart. I did, however, suffer through the anti-crochet-old granny-doily syndrome in the seventies and still remember some of the inadequate feelings I chose to hang onto about my passion and beloved crochet. I vowed when I started the Crochet Guild (CGOA) that we crocheters would never cast aspersions upon any needleartists. Stitching is a pathway everyone deserves to take and it doesn't matter how the loops are twisted as long as they are twistin'. I believe each and every member of the CGOA is a Crochet Star! We just have to start believing it  and promoting ourselves as such. A little more sense of humor, like our stitcherly sisters seem to have, would help. We have the passion and we've worked long and hard to achieve our skills, so why not be ...

If you've never thought of crochet as anything but a "gentle" art, beware of crochet overload! It could cause your head to explode. Let me explain.....Last week I was in the thread aisle at JoAnn looking for the required #3 size thread for our bead tapestry crochet lesson. I noticed a lady picking out the same thread I needed and the quantities of colors were limited, so I politely hung there to let her pick what she wanted, slightly worried that there would be nothing left for me. Because #3 thread is not commonly used, I decided to ask her if she was getting supplies for the Crochet Guild meeting. She looked at me strangely as if she was trying to absorb what I was talking about. It turns out that English is the second language of this nice polish lady in her seventies. When she absorbed the activities at a guild meeting that I described, she seemed interested. I gave her our guild card and drew a small map so she could find her way to the meeting. She actually lives in...

August 2, 2010-Catching up with photos over these last 8 months that have FLOWN by. To see the birth story and early photos, scroll below. Loves to swim! Loves to play! June 2010 -Chloe's Christening-dress crocheted by Crochetqueen! May 29, 2010 -At Papa's 90th Birthday with 2nd cousin Kaylee-7 months old Easter 2010 -6 months old St Patty's Day 2010 -3 1/2 months old February 2010 -2 1/2 months old Her first vacation-Florida February 2010 -2 months old CHLOE MARIE : Born November 24, 2009 at 12:27 PM to Nicole and Jeff Wawok. She weighed 6#-7 oz and was 20 inches long. Of course she is gorgeous and cute and the full head of black hair is definitely a plus!Becoming a "Grandma" ("GiGi" in Gwen-language) for the first time is amazing, wonderful, fun and challenging all at the same time. Others would have a myriad of other adjectives to add, I am sure. It's tiring too, so I am going to cut and paste snippets from messages that I have sent out since her...

"The first known inhabitants of Ajijic were probably nomadic indigenous tribes, drawn to the area by the abundant fish. The Spanish arrived in 1523 or 1524 and found a village named AXIXIC , 'The place where water splashes.' They built a church that was finished in 1539. Tourism started in the late 19th century. Ajijic became an artist colony in the 1940s and attracted artists of many disciplines as well as some 'Hollywood' types. Prosperity, fueled by retiring 'baby boomers' is in full swing. New businesses flourish side by side with well established ones for the benefit and enjoyment of the entire area. Hotels, restaurants and galleries cater to international tourists and ex-patriots as well as style-savvy Mexicans. All come to enjoy the great climate, beautiful sunsets and friendly inhabitants."("Ajijic Centro", brochure, author unknown) Wednesday, August 26, 2009 Our flight from Chicago, through Dallas to Guadalajara was uneventful...